O Brien Wealth Partners LLC Takes Position in Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN)

O Brien Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN – Get Rating) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 438 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $117,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ACN. United Bank raised its stake in shares of Accenture by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 2,969 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Accenture by 1.3% in the first quarter. Weitz Investment Management Inc. now owns 89,400 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $30,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,168 shares during the last quarter. Fund Management at Engine No. 1 LLC bought a new position in shares of Accenture in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,805,000. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Accenture by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 7,292 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $2,459,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Accenture by 104.8% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 441,451 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $148,871,000 after purchasing an additional 225,943 shares during the period. 73.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Accenture news, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 2,954 shares of Accenture stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.05, for a total value of $827,267.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 24,459 shares in the company, valued at $6,849,742.95. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, General Counsel Joel Unruch sold 556 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $276.82, for a total value of $153,911.92. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 42,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,831,009.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Julie Spellman Sweet sold 2,954 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.05, for a total value of $827,267.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 24,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,849,742.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,010 shares of company stock valued at $4,180,030 in the last ninety days. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Accenture Stock Performance

Shares of ACN stock traded up $12.08 on Friday, hitting $303.84. The company had a trading volume of 2,277,667 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,381,242. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $276.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.13. The firm has a market cap of $191.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 1.25. Accenture plc has a twelve month low of $242.80 and a twelve month high of $322.88.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN – Get Rating) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 23rd. The information technology services provider reported $2.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.49 by $0.20. Accenture had a net margin of 11.00% and a return on equity of 30.73%. The firm had revenue of $15.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.54 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Accenture plc will post 11.57 EPS for the current year.

Accenture Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 13th were given a $1.12 dividend. This represents a $4.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 12th. Accenture’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ACN shares. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Accenture in a report on Monday, March 20th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Accenture from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 24th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Accenture from $300.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Accenture from $289.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 24th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Accenture in a research report on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $314.00.

About Accenture

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Accenture Plc engages in the provision of management consulting, technology, and outsourcing services. It operates through the following geographical segments: North America, Europe and Growth Markets. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.